Amphibians

Early amphibians were the first animals to leave the sea and venture onto land, forming a key evolutionary bridge from fish to terrestrial reptiles. A class of animals that includes frogs, toads, and salamanders, amphibians are indicator species — that is, the health of a region’s amphibian population indicates the health of the ecosystem in general. In recent decades there has been a dramatic decline in amphibian populations around the globe.

The canyon tree frog inhabits the Colorado Plateau’s river corridors, where uranium mining tailings threaten water quality, oil and gas drilling activity disturbs sensitive habitat, and dams and other water projects divert the flows that species depend on for survival.

Like most amphibian species in North America, the northern leopard frog is suffering from the effects of habitat loss, pollution, and disease. Its populations across the western U.S. have declined drastically.